This study expanded upon existing literature by examining how parental separation, discord, and polygenic predispositions for problematic alcohol use are associated with the course of heavy episodic drinking across adolescence and young adulthood in a high-risk, longitudinal sample of individuals from 2 genetically inferred continental groups. Consistent with prior research,13 we found support for a nonlinear longitudinal course of HED from adolescence through young adulthood, best described by a quadratic growth model, with an increase in HED through adolescence and the mid 20s, followed by a decline. Our findings provided a nuanced understanding of how parental separation and parental discord are associated with baseline levels and longitudinal course of HED.
